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Vanessa Barahona

Ms. Moore

Expository Reading & Writing Course

28 February 2017

Youth Justice Essay

The line between childhood and adulthood is simply stated as the day a person turns

eighteen and is no longer a minor. Factors tend to change this belief given if a childs maturity is

above their years however, it is often believed that once a child strays down the wrong path they

will ultimately become a troublesome adult as well. According to Jennifer Jenkins, teenage

homicide makes up 1,300 court cases which resulted in a lifetime sentence in the United States.

Children who make a rash decision can be sent to jail for the rest of their god given life, with that

being said I believe sentencing for these children should be judged differently in the court of law.

The cases are very circumstantial and should not fall under the same guidelines as an adult would

be tried due to the rarity in which they occur. Juveniles should not be given life without parole

because it eliminates the possibility for change in teens who come from broken homes.

Because a child is under the care of another individual, it is difficult to determine if the

way they are raised is to fault for their behavior. An abusive household or an overall negative

environment can sometimes create irrational thoughts in a childs mind that is still developing. It

is said by Gail Garinger that, certain children were considered hopelessly defective, perhaps

genetically so. Today, few believe that criminal genes are inherited, except in the sense that

parental abuse and negative home lives can leave children with little hope and limited choices.

The blame is often put on a child for becoming a bad seed but it should be noted that children

learn from their parents what is right and what is wrong. Some teens are put into homes that are
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filled with non stop verbal, emotional, physical, and sexual abuse. It is the backdrop for a

disaster in the making, even more so when we take into account that often times teens cannot

leave their situation because they are still minors. It is up to the parent to leave a hostile situation

for the better but some in some cases there is no help. Teens feel as though they have no hope.

Teen homicide should not inevitably result in a lifetime in prison, although it should be

punishable by all means. An adult is viewed as mature enough to make their own decisions and

form a lifestyle for themselves to become the person they are. Teens, however, are very

persuaded to follow in the steps of their friends or parents. The Supreme Court stated, juvenile

offenders cannot with reliability be classified among the worst offenders: they are less mature,

more vulnerable to peer pressure, cannot escape from dangerous environments, and their

characters are still in formation. In comparison to an adult, teens dont have the mindset to

understand how much their actions affect other people. They are still growing and learning from

their mistakes as all children do. Adults have had a lifetime to learn otherwise from their own

errors, it would be unjust to not allow room for failure when that is how we are truly learn for

ourselves.

In the case of teens who commit murder, I believe that it would be wrong to condemn

them for a lapse in judgement. Each case should be evaluated for what may have caused and or

prevented the crime at hand. Majority of the time, a judge would find that the fault would not be

completely on the accused which should be a factor in determining the sentence for any person

who has committed a crime.